Seventy former workers of Rolf’s Patisserie rallied with community and religious supporters outside their recently-shuttered factory on January 11 announcing the filing of a class-action lawsuit for violations of the WARN Act, a federal worker protection law, and denouncing the theft of their final paychecks by their former employer.
“We just want justice,” said Karen Leyva, an assistant office manager at the company for six years, while standing in the shadow of her former employer. “We demand them to pay us what we worked so hard for.”
Workers, some of whom had devoted over a decade to the company, were shocked to discover via their company’s web site that the plant would be closing. Without warning, they were all terminated immediately, their lives unexpectedly thrown into turmoil just days before Christmas.
“It was a Christmas we’re never going to forget,” said Leyva. “with no money for food, rent, medicine, or gifts for our kids. It was a great injustice.”
Still reeling from their firings and unsure how to support their families, workers took their final paychecks—their only remaining resources—to banks and currency exchanges. They would be shocked a second time: their checks had bounced, and workers were now facing harassment from collections agencies and were responsible for debilitating fees from those same banks and currency exchanges.
“The workers were kicked while already down,“ said Arise Chicago Workers Center director Adam. “On top of losing their jobs out of nowhere, they had the last of their earned wages blatantly stolen from them.”
The WARN Act requires employers with over 100 workers to provide at least 60 days notice of a workplace closure or 60 days severance pay—neither of which were provided to workers.
Kader says that “a poorly performing business in a slumping economy does not justify the company’s actions.
“The economy is hurting everyone right now, but hard times are no excuse for breaking the law,” said Kader. “These workers aren’t demanding anything outlandish—just what they’re legally owed.”
“We earned that money,“ added Karen Leyva, referring to her final bounced check.
Arise Chicago builds partnerships between faith communities and workers to fight workplace injustice through education and organizing and advocating for public policy changes. Its Worker Center is a community resource for workers, both immigrant and native-born, to learn about their rights and join fellow workers to improve workplace conditions. www.arisechicago.org
Filed under: Low wage workers, Strikes and work action Tagged: | Arise Chicago, Rolf’s Patisserie, wage theft
